Sentience
by Leoncia
Summary: Awakened to the fact that her friends and companions, save Shippou, have gone missing, Kagome sets out to find the one person who she knows could find InuYasha anywhere- Sesshoumaru. Along her journey she comes across a very old, and very odd, sentient spear that calls itself Sanosuke Harada. (Sess/Kag with bits of Sano/Kag)
1. Chapter 1: The cold, dead fire

This story of mine will follow most of the main events, save for a few. You will notice the differences as you read through the story because it will be deadly obvious if you've finished the manga or anime. For example, the time line will be drastically altered. It has been over the course of six years that InuYasha and the rest have been looking for the shards. Imagine the main storyline, but over a longer course of time, hehe.

_Sentience_

_Chapter 1: The cold, dead fire_

_By Leoncia (AisuKaze)_

Colorful leaves, the tell-tale sign that fall was approaching, were slowly being illuminated by the rays of the sun rising in the east. The wind blew gently, making the leaves twitter with slight movement. This movement allowed the sun to fall on Kagome's face, which she didn't much appreciate as she rolled over and buried her face into Shippou's hair while tucking the edges of her sleeping bag over both of their heads.

Awake enough to know it was morning, her soft brown eyes fluttered open to greet the day. While her mind caught up Kagome slowly began to realize it was the most peaceful wakeup call she had in quite a long time. She groaned and sat up slowly, trying not to disturb the still sleeping child. Hands moving to rub the last bits of sleep from her eyes, she began to wonder if Sango had finally tied up InuYasha and gagged him so all of them could get more sleep than they were used to.

Her eyes landed on the now cold and dead fire. Normally it would have still been glowing faintly as InuYasha would poke at it and add new fire wood to it during the night—he didn't sleep much, if you couldn't tell.

Confusion fell over her face as panic started to bury itself within her mind. She looked around quickly, her hands on Shippou and shaking him awake. He groggily answered to the shaking by swatting at her hands, only to receive an even more violent shake in return.

"Yeah, yeah InuYasha. I'm up, I'm up!" As he yelled he sat up quickly before the half-demon became even more violent towards him. That was, at least, until he realized that it was Kagome who was shaking him awake.

He began to sense the fear, confusion, and panic that were rolling off of her in waves. Before he could ask her, though, she beat him to it.

"Where is everyone, Shippou?" Her voice was weak.

Shippou shot up from his place within the sleeping bag and look a quick look around the campsite. There wasn't a trace of any of their traveling companions to be found. Sango's large boomerang was missing; her pack that held her other clothing and necessities was also gone. In fact, the more he looked, the more it dawned on him that it seemed like the only ones who made camp the night before were he and Kagome.

"I… I don't know." He quietly crept around the camp, sniffing the air and the spaces his friends had made their own for the night.

"It smells like they haven't been around all night. The only scent I can catch is part of InuYasha's." He mumbled. "But it doesn't me out any. His scent doesn't lead to anywhere." Shippou paused to point up at a low-hanging branch, "It's only in that area."

Kagome, by now standing as well and following Shippou around, felt her heart jump into her throat. Panic fully within her mind now, she began to scream their names. Only the silence of the forest greeted her in return.

"Sit!" she yelled as loud as she could. They both waited for the normal sound of InuYasha crashing forcefully to the ground. The forest was the only companion around them this morning, it seemed.

Kagome stood rock still for what seemed like an hour. In reality it had only been half a minute before she began hurriedly packing her and Shippou's things back into her backpack. Shippou turned and after he realized what she was doing, he quickly set about helping her.

"What are we going to do, Kagome?" his voice pleaded at her, his green eyes constantly glancing at her as they stuffed their belongings away.

"We're returning to the village, to Kaede. It's the only thing I can think of right now," she answered.

Shippou nodded. It was probably the only good idea they were going to come up with, given the circumstances.

As they finished packing, they immediately set out back the way they had previously traveled. Kagome's mind was reeling with possibilities. Some thoughts, such as the group getting tired of her and leaving her, were down right crazy but her mind was throwing any random thing at her that it could conjure up.

They traveled all day, only briefly stopping for a break or something to eat. Shippou would scout ahead every hour or so to make sure they were on the right path, and return to Kagome with directions. At night, they only made a small camp with no fire—seeing as fire attracted enemies and Kagome wasn't in the right of mind to deal with that—and slept very little. They set out again, hours before the sun was bound to rise.

* * *

Over all they made good time and reached Kaede's village in a day and a half. Shippou had noticed no traces of their group along the way and he felt his heart sink into the pit that had been growing the past couple of hours. He couldn't smell them within the village, either.

"They're not here, Kagome…" he said quietly and after hearing her sharp intake of breath, he wanted to kick himself. He just squashed all of Kagome's hopes, even if he was being realistic.

Kagome gave a nod for an answer and headed for Kaede's hut, Shippou close behind her. As she closed in on the home of the aging priestess, smoking slowly billowing out of the small hole in the roof, she released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding till now.

"Kaede!" Kagome yelled before pushing back the bamboo screen.

The old priestess looked up to Kagome, then Shippou, shock clearly all over her face. She stood up slowly and walked towards them, watching Kagome take her shoes off and Shippou dust off his paws.

"What is the matter, child?" she asked as she took Kagome's elbow gently into her hand. "Why are ye back so early?" Stealing a look past the two she added, "And where be the others?"

Kagome felt comfort in the elder woman's touch and it took everything she had to not collapse against the priestess and cry her heart out.

"I was hoping you could tell me that…" she whispered and hung her head, bangs shielding her eyes.

Kaede maneuvered Kagome into a sitting position by the fire pit while Shippou recounted what had happened, and how they immediately set off back to the village.

She sat silent for quite a while, thinking over the events she just learned about. Kaede finally released a sigh and shook her head, "I'm afraid I don't know what has happened, children. Did you notice anything, besides the others missing, that would give me some clues?"

Shippou chimed in, "Miroku, Sango, and Kirara's scents were completely gone, like they had never set foot in that part of the forest. InuYasha's was lingering but it was faint, and didn't lead anywhere. It was like…"

"They just disappeared," Kaede gently finished his sentence for him. At Shippou's silence Kaede took that as the end of her clues and a frown formed on her face. She'd never heard of something like this, either.

Kagome began to shake violently, holding back hot tears that threatened to spill over onto her cheeks. She tightened her hands into fists, "We need to find them. _Now._" She grit out between her clenched teeth.

Shippou scooted closer to Kagome and rested his head on her shaking shoulder, "We will, Kagome, we will."

Kaede looked on with a hint of pride swelling in her breast. Kagome and Shippou had both matured over the years, but she felt sad that it took this dilemma for her to realize it. "_Must be me age getting to me finally." _She thought bitterly to herself.

"What will ye do?" Kaede asked. The answer was the last thing she ever expected to come from Kagome, and it seemed Shippou felt the same way.

"I'm going to find Sesshoumaru."


	2. Chapter 2: Memories and Surprises

I just noticed how short these chapters are. I've already got up to chapter 8, but after chapter 6 you might notice them take on a bit more length. Sorry about that!

* * *

Chapter 2: Memories and Surprises

By Leoncia (AisuKaze)

Kagome leaned against the truck of the Sacred Tree, her legs dangling off the great roots that peaked above the surface of the earth. She was currently wondering just what had made her want to find the Demon Lord. After a couple of hours she came to a conclusion: Sesshoumaru had a knack for finding InuYasha, no matter where the half-demon was at. She was sure he could find his half-brother now.

But another question plagued her. _"Why would he __**want**__ to?" _

She, nor had any of the others, hadn't seen Sesshoumaru in months. Since the fight that lead Sesshoumaru to acquire his own sword, Bakusaiga, as well as the return of his left arm, Kagome had felt he had no more business with her little group until the final fight would be upon them.

The next question was: How would she find him? She didn't have the demonic senses that InuYasha had. Of course, Shippou did, but she was leaving him with Kaede for his own safety. Kagome was sure when the fox demon found out he would throw a fit, but she didn't care. She was going on her own.

Kagome sighed and thunked her head against the rough bark of the tree. To try and ease some of the pain she was feeling at the moment, Kagome brought forth happier memories to her mind.

She remembered Sango's laughter; Miroku's twinkling eyes and groping hands; InuYasha's rough nature and his face in the dirt; Shippou's tricks, and Kirara's happy mews.

She basically thought about everything that had happened over the course of the last six years. She somehow managed to graduate high school and intended to leave college for a later date. Her friends had grown in distance from her, and she couldn't blame them. Hojo had moved on, though only after a warning from InuYasha. Her trait of wearing her famous white and green school uniform had been abandoned by the first year. Her naïve mind had thought it was A-Okay to waltz around wearing that. As she grew older, and encountered a lot of trouble over the blasted thing, she started really coming to terms with what men were thinking.

It had taken InuYasha and Koga both almost killing a man for groping her as the group passed a band of traveling merchants. Koga had been traveling with them for some time for reasons of his own, until he was called back to his pack. InuYasha and he were fighting constantly and the grope came at the worst possible time.

They could almost stand it when Miroku would grope her. After all, he meant no harm and they realized it was a habit of his—one Sango continued to try and beat out of him. But a man they didn't know, and clearly had different intentions on his mind? One they could feel lust pouring from the man's body? They didn't stand for that in the slightest.

Sooner after Kagome had adopted a more conservative style and she was now wearing the clothes made to fit into this time era. She asked her mother to make her a priestess outfit that wouldn't make her a literal copy of Kikyou. Her mother was ecstatic at this, happy her daughter was maturing and growing out of the need to wear her uniform where ever she went.

Over time her mother had produced numerous priestess outfits for her daughter, each different from the last. The one she was currently wearing had deep green hakamas and a white haori. The stitching of the haori was the same deep green as her hakamas. Her mother had added flair with embroidery on the left sleeve of the haori in the shape of purplish-black flowers—Nightshade, her mother had called them. She wondered why her mother would put such a thing on her haori, but she didn't outright question it.

On top of all this, Kagome had also started taking lessons in combat some time ago, with Sango as her teacher. Sango was more amazing with the katana than Kagome could imagine, having thought her boomerang—Hiraikotsu –was the only weapon she was used to.

While Kagome was happy that InuYasha and the rest were willing to protect her, she felt the need to be able to do something more than fire purification arrows. She needed a way to protect her, and Shippou, from harm should a demon, or something else, broke through the line of defense that protected her.

What surprised Kagome the most though was when Miroku had begun teaching her how to use a staff, or another polearm should Kagome choose to wield one. He had told her it was because her natural stance she always had dropped into seemed more fit for a polearm than anything else. She had taken to it faster than she had with Sango teaching her the katana.

Kagome stopped her train of thought and chuckled, "Now if I could only find a decent spear to use, that would be just great, thanks." She cradled her head in her hands. What was she thinking? She didn't even have a katana, or hoped to find a decent one that lived up to InuYasha and Sango's approval. A spear was out of the question.

"Kagome?"

She looked up at the sound of her name to see Shippou walking towards her. The little kit had grown since she first met him. He now resembled a thirteen or fourteen year old human child, but Kagome had a feeling he was far older than that. He had grown from the size of a three year old, to someone ten years older than that in the span of four years.

She offered him a strained smile as she slid down the roots of the Sacred Tree. He stopped just short of the tree and looked at her, "Are you going home to prepare?"

Kagome nodded, "Soon, I will be. I want to talk to you first." She closed the distance between them and pulled the young demon to her, wrapping her arms around him in a fierce hug.

Not shocked by the action, Shippou returned her hug while speaking into her shoulder, "If this is about me staying behind you can forget it." Even though his voice was muffled, Kagome could hear the determination in his voice.

She sighed and laid her head on his, "Hearing how you just said that, I will forget it. You'll end up following me anyway, huh?"

"Damn right…" He was interrupted, "Language. InuYasha's rubbing off on your attitude way too much." Kagome scolded him.

She gave him another squeeze and let go. "I'll leave now, be back by tonight and we will leave in the morning. How's that sound?"

Shippou nodded and walked with her towards the well. As she climbed up on the lip his hand shot out to grab the fabric of her sleeve. A bit shocked, he let go as fast as he had grabbed it. He realized then that he was afraid Kagome would disappear like the rest of them had.

She gave him one last smile and fell into the well. Blue light wafted out of the shaft of the well, letting him know she didn't just smack into the bottom and break a bone or something.

Shippou gazed at the well for a moment before deciding to try it out for himself. He was a demon, what could it hurt? He wouldn't break anything from the fall. He swiftly hopped up onto the lip of the well and, as if he was just taking a stroll, stepped off into the inky blackness.

He landed with the grace expected of his kind and was surprised at the disappointment he felt with the lack of the blue light. He sighed and moved to jump from the well, his body crouching close to the ground as he prepared to jump.

Small white balls of light began to drift around him and he could _feel_ the magic in the air. He sucked in a breath as the light began to move faster and faster until finally it released into the blinding blue he was familiar with whenever Kagome or InuYasha passed through.

"It worked!" he exclaimed before he was whisked away.

He felt himself drifting and the excited, nervous feeling he had when he was falling swelled within his stomach. The well walls were gone, replaced by a blue darkness with the same white lights as before racing past him. When his feet touched solid ground again, he heard a surprised gasp, that sounded an awful lot like his name, come from above him.

He looked up to find Kagome staring in shock at him. He quickly hopped from the well and landed behind Kagome, waiting for her to turn to face him.

And she did, her mouth moving as if she was a fish out of water.

"I know, right?" he said jokingly as he held his arms out, letting her see that he was fine and dandy.

"HOW? I thought only InuYasha and I could travel through the well!" she trotted to him and touched his face lightly with her hands.

"Don't ask me. I just got curious and wanted to try it. It didn't seem like it would take, until these… lights started coming from the bottom of the well."

Kagome nodded and placed a hand over her chest, trying to calm her heart down. Shippou grabbed her hand and began tugging her towards the door.

_"This is going to be interesting…" _she thought as he flung the doors to the well house open.


	3. Chapter 3: Cosplaying

Chapter 3: Cosplaying

By Leoncia

Shippou gagged immediately, covering his face with his free hand. He staggered back into Kagome, "It freakin' STINKS. What the HELL is that SMELL? It burns! I can't take this! Help me, Kagome, please! I feel like my nose is about to fall off…"

Kagome stifled a giggle, only to receive a glare from the fox demon. He grabbed Kagome and stood behind her, burying his face into her hair. "Lead the way. I can't stand this anymore! Take me away!"

Kagome fully laughed and began walking towards her house, listening to Shippou gripe and complain the entire way. "Yeah, InuYasha had the same reaction and he's a half-demon. I can't imagine what you're picking up."

She heard Shippou snort, whether in disdain or simply just trying to get the offense smell out of his nose, she wasn't for sure. Kagome grinned as she walked and saw her mother's surprised face through the window in the kitchen, then disappear. The door flew open and out rushed her mother, her arms held out wide.

She bypassed Kagome, who had a shocked look on her face, as she hugged Shippou tightly. "He is as cute as you mentioned Kagome! He's so adorable!" her mother giggled out.

Shippou looked surprised at being suddenly twisted and pulled around by an older looking Kagome, until he realized this was the mother she had always been speaking of. So, in a way, it was as if he was meeting his grandmother for the first time.

There was a suddenly bustle of activity behind them and Kagome turned to see Souta and to her horror, a couple of his friends, come flying out of the house.

"Whoa, does he have a tail?"

"Look at his feet! They're paws!"

"Why's your sister dressed like that, Souta?"

As horrified as Kagome was it was reflected back at her from Souta. She wasn't supposed to be back for another month! Kagome started laughing nervously, her hand going to twirl a lock of her hair—a habit that she had during times of stress that almost cost her a bald spot – and she started trying to make up excuses in her head.

Souta intercepted the questions with ease once his shock was over, "They're cosplaying! You see, this is a kid that my sister baby sits and he has an obsession with anime. That's why she was gone this week, you see! She was taking him to a convention, just she came back early!" He tried, quickly, to explain.

He saw doubt on their faces as they looked Shippou up and down, then Kagome. One of them suddenly nodded, "Makes sense, I guess. It's amazing what they could do with make-up…" he said as he took one last, long look at Shippou.

Souta was suddenly behind his friends and pushing towards the Shrine's steps. "Okay, let's go! We're going to miss the movie!" He continued shoving when they started protesting. He gave a final glance back to Kagome, a look of horror still on his face and mouthed "You owe me", before he disappeared down the steps.

Kagome sighed with relief and slumped to the ground, "That was a little too close. If they were any older, I'm afraid you'd be shipping off to have tests and stuff done to now, Shippou."

The fox demon looked confused as she crouched down next to her, "Kagome, what's cos-…cos-…cosplaying?"

Kagome laughed at his question, but it was her mother who answered for her. "It's when people dress up like those they admire, or want to be. It's pretty common in Japan lately…" her voice trailed off as she helped Kagome up from the ground.

Her mother smiled to them and ushered them inside the house before someone else came along. "Care to tell me what's going on, now? I thought only you and InuYasha could pass through the well."

Shutting the door behind her, Kagome's mother giggled as Shippou finally began to take in his surroundings. His face was the perfect picture of awe and curiosity. She moved the stupefied boy to a chair and had him sit down in it. Once she was satisfied she began preparing tea for them.

Kagome sat down as well and started retelling the same story Shippou had to Kaede, and added in her and Shippou's decision to go find Sesshoumaru. By the time Kagome was done speaking, the tea was finished and Shippou and her mother were slowly sipping at it. Her mother had a look of thought about her before she finally spoke.

"Isn't Sesshoumaru the half-brother of InuYasha, who has tried to kill you on multiple occasions?"

Kagome nodded slowly, "Yes… but he's the only one I can ask in this situation… He has an uncanny ability to find InuYasha where ever he is."

Her mother leaned back, closed her eyes, and sighed. "I'm not comfortable with it, but you know that era better than I do as well as the people in it. Do what your heart tells you, Kagome."

Kagome smiled brightly at her mother, silently thanking her for the trust.

After their tea, Kagome set about preparing for the journey. It took the rest of the day to finish gathering and buying everything she needed. Shippou was left at the house, much to his protest, but he didn't seem to mind it once her mother brought out cookies and other sweets. If Shippou had been more used to her world Kagome would have easily taken him with her. His fox magic had increased over the years and she knew he could hide his demonic features.

On the way back to the Shrine, bags in hand, Kagome passed a shop that piqued her interest (even if she almost missed it and had to back track).

It was the oddest shop she had ever seen in modern day Tokyo. It was like an antiques store filled with ancient weaponry, armor, scrolls and other such objects. She expected to be filled with old furniture or something like that but she couldn't spot a single thing of that nature as she slowly entered the shop, a bell signaling her entrance.

"Just a minute!" filtered a warm, feminine voice from the back of the shop.

Kagome waited patiently at the door, taking in fully what she could before a red-headed woman walked between the stacks of old scrolls and piles of armor. She wiped her hands on the apron wrapped around her and beamed a smile at Kagome. "How can I help you? It's not often I get visitors your age in here" she said kindly.

"Ah… I just thought I'd drop in. I've never been in here before, and I've walked by this way a lot in my life. I just wanted to see what was in here," Kagome spoke with respect in her voice.

The woman smiled again and nodded, "I can imagine it would be a surprise then. Would you like to look around?"

"May I?"

"Of course!" she said in a sing-song voice as she began leading Kagome through the shop.

As they maneuvered around various things the woman threw the question over her shoulder, "Anything you're interested in? I can tell by the way you're moving right now that you've had some sort of combat training. I have weapons and the like in the back, if you want to see them?"

Kagome nodded quickly, "Yes, please!"

They reached the back and Kagome was amazed at the amount of weapons lined along the wall. Her eyes landed on a gorgeous spear. The wood was a deep red-brown mixture, the accents gold as well as the grip located roughly around the middle of the shaft of the weapon. The spearhead was a gleaming, sharp, along with dangerous, piece of metal that had looked like it had seen a lot of battles. Nothing could take away from the battle-worn look of the spear, even if it had been taken care of and treated properly.

The woman next to her noticed her gaze as she smiled to herself. She stepped forward and grabbed the haft and butt of the spear, lowering it from the wall. After tossing it in her hands a bit she handed the spear to Kagome, who set her bags down and took it carefully.

As soon as she touched it she could feel something coursing through the wood of the spear. It caused her eyes to widen as she felt the hum of a spell, or something akin to it. The woman grinned next to her and patted Kagome on the back.

"I've never seen it react that way to a person before," she said with a strange tone to her voice, as if she knew something that Kagome didn't. Kagome took the bait, "React to a person?"

She nodded, "I'm Chizuru, by the way."

Kagome was thrown off by her sudden introduction, but nonetheless returned it with her own. "I'm Kagome Higurashi; it's nice to meet you." There was a bit of a questioning tone to her voice.

Chizuru's grin never left her face, "Nice to meet you too, Kagome. And what I mean by react to a person is just that. That spear is a sentient weapon."

Seeing the confusion on Kagome's face, she continued. "It means that a person has attached their soul to the weapon. Whoever's soul that is, the spear was probably their own and on their death they felt such a longing to remain alive for a specific reason that their soul was transferred to the spear."

Kagome took in her explanation and thought it over. She had seen weirder things in the past six years, but it was still slightly hard to accept.

_"So, your name is Kagome?" _she heard a definitely male and extremely sexy sounding voice echo in her head and she let go of the spear as if it burned her.


	4. Chapter 4: Sanosuke Harada

Chapter 4: Sanosuke

By Leoncia

_"Hey, don't drop me, woman!" _the voice echoed to her again.

Chizuru laughed, "It spoke to you, didn't it?" Kagome just nodded, dumbfounded, as she gently picked the spear back up. "Sorry… I didn't mean to! You just surprised me!"

_"Ah well, don't worry about it. Not like it hurt or anything." _

"Do you want it?" asked the older woman.

Kagome looked at her, her eyes wide. "How much would it cost?"

Chizuru shrugged and titled her head, "Well…" she drew out the word teasingly. "How about whenever you have free time, you come see me? It does get awfully lonely in this shop." A grinned split her face again at Kagome's surprised face.

"That's it, my time? Are you sure, Chizuru?" she asked as she clutched the spear closer to her chest.

_"Hey, don't question it. She's giving me to you, take the offer and run!" _the spear practically yelled at her.

Kagome glanced down at the spear, then back to Chizuru. "Sure, why not? It's not every day that a sentient weapon finds its owner, you know? My father owned this shop and I inherited it from him. He would double over in joy to see such a thing." Chizuru's voice was wistful as she spoke.

Without saying another word Chizuru turned and grabbed a cover for the spear's head off the wall and handed it to Kagome. She took it slowly, looking down to the spear, "Care if I cover up the blade?"

_"Of course not, go ahead." _It responded. Kagome nodded and strapped the cover over the blade. She almost jumped out of her skin when she heard the tinkling of the bells, letting them know someone else had come into the shop.

Chizuru turned, "Just a moment, please!" She called out. Turning to Kagome, she set a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "Business calls, I guess. Take care of it, okay?"

Kagome nodded and returned her smile, "Of course! I should be going anyway."

"Be careful, then. See you later, Kagome." Chizuru didn't let Kagome respond. She left in a hurry to take care of the customer, leaving Kagome in a slight daze.

_"Shall we go, my mistress?" _

Kagome groaned, "Don't call me that. Kagome is fine."

The spear's laugh echoed in her head, _"And you may call me Sanosuke." _

"Sanosuke…" she let the world slide off her tongue and nodded.

* * *

After Kagome left the shop, she couldn't count the number of weird stares she was getting from people. Sanosuke was griping the entire time, yelling at them to stop their gawking and go on with their business. Not that they could hear him, anyway, but Kagome sure could. She felt the beginnings of a headache bloom at the top of her head and she wondered if she'd ever get used to hearing another voice in her head besides her own.

"Maybe I really am crazy…." She muttered.

_"I heard that. I can assure you, you're not crazy." _

"Says the voice in my head," Kagome countered.

_"Hah! True, true. I guess this would be a little unnerving, but you seem to be taking it rather well considering the circumstances." _He mused, mumbling about how dull humans had gotten in the past century.

Kagome chuckled and shifted the spear—Sanosuke into a better position on her shoulder. "If you had seen the things I have in the last six years, you'd take a spear talking to you pretty well, too."

_"Oh, and what's that?" _

She began telling Sanosuke about all the things that happened to her. The trip, literally, down the well and the Shikon no Tama being ripped from her body. She spoke of InuYasha and his necklace, the sit command that would make him crash to the ground. That made Sanosuke laugh hard.

She continued her story as she reached the Shrine and climbed up the steps, passing through the Tori gate. She tried to sum it up as best she could, but six years to cover, even summarized, even took quite a bit of time to talk about.

She decided not to go back into the house, content with telling her new companion the rest of the story and what had happened in the past couple of days. Kagome sat at the base of the Sacred Tree and once her story was finished Sanosuke was quiet for a moment before speaking.

_"I see… I'm sorry to hear about that, but I'm happy I can be of help now." _His tone was kind and understanding.

"This will be the first time I've actually used a spear, though… I've only had a monk staff to practice with." She said, a bit dejected.

_"Ah, I wouldn't worry about that Kagome. I have it covered." _

"How do you have it covered?"

By the tone of his voice Kagome could imagine the grin he would have on his face if he was a real human, _"You'll just have to wait and see, my dear." _


	5. Chapter 5: The Search Beings Maybe

Chapter 5: The Search Begins. Maybe

By Leoncia

Kagome had returned home only to find she was explaining more things to her family, including Shippou. Shippou was wary of the spear until, to Kagome's shock, Sanosuke's voice echoed from the spear and through the room.

"I'm not going to hurt her, kit. I've been waiting for almost a century now for someone that resonated with me enough for me to show myself. Do you think I'd really hurt the one person that I've been dying to meet?" Sanosuke said with a stern tone to his voice. "Figuratively at least."

Shippou shook his head, "No…it's just strange, and that's all."

* * *

Kagome pointed out they were short on time and the house was set into movement. Kagome and her mother packing things into a backpack for her and one for Shippou Kagome had purchased while she was out. The backpacks resembled each other in style, with Kagome's black and Shippou's green. They had a raindrop shape to them, with only a single strap that lay across their chest at an angle.

Kagome's grandfather had left the house—not without trying to sutra Shippou's face—as he mumbled about needing to get something from the storage shed. Souta had already gone to bed, tired from the day's events and trying to keep his friends out of his house. He said good-bye to the two before he went groggily up the stairs, disappearing into his room.

When her grandfather returned Kagome had just finished explaining the backpack to Shippou and was adjusting the strap to fit around his torso better.

"Kagome, I have something for you." He said as he tapped the girl on the shoulder and shoved a wrapped package into her hands.

Dumbfounded, Kagome was slightly wondering if it was another weird, yet fake, artifact. As if she was expecting something to jump out of her, she gingerly wrapped whatever it was. Her eyes grew big as she turned to look at her grandfather.

"Is… is this what I think it is?" She asked.

Her grandfather nodded and looked pointedly at Shippou while speaking to Kagome. "This was made for Kitsune demons. I don't know how it works but it's supposedly supposed to enhance their magic."

Kagome nodded slowly, "All right… but where did you get it?" She turned the item over and over in her hands. It was an amulet, and she could tell it had a great deal of care put into it as it was made. Gold in coloring, the amulet was shaped into a traditional style of a Kitsune. With sapphires for eyes, Kagome could tell it couldn't have been cheap in price.

"Give it to the boy, Kagome." The woman did as her grandfather asked and slipped the amulet over Shippou's head, patting it as it came to rest on his chest.

"I found that while you were out shopping today. A new shop opened up and I wanted to see what things I could find, once I learned what exactly the shop sold."

Kagome's memory flashed back to the shop she acquired Sanosuke from. "Did the woman that sold it to you, happen to be named Chizuru?"

Giving her an odd look, her grandfather nodded.

"She's the one who gave me Sanosuke."

The room went quiet with understanding. Kagome's mind was reeling and was only calmed with she heard Sanosuke's voice filter through. _"What are the chances this was pure coincidence, Kagome?"_

Kagome struggled out an "I don't know", before her mother snapped her out of her daze by clapping her hands.

"All right, Kagome and Shippou need to leave. They don't have time to be wasting over this at the moment."

Everything came flooding back to Kagome and she gasped, quickly moving to gather her things. With Shippou to her side, and Sanosuke in her hand, she turned to her family and gave them a bright smile.

"I'll be back once we find InuYasha and the others!"

Her mother smiled gently to her, nodding. "While you're gone we'll try to find out more about this shop, so you won't need to worry about it."

"Okay…thanks, mom…I appreciate it. See you later!"

"Bye!" Shippou called out over his shoulder as he and Kagome made their way through the courtyard and to the well house. They quickly walked, Shippou clinging to Kagome and stuffing his face in her hair. The doors to the well house were opened by Shippou as he quickly darted inside and disappeared. Kagome was greeted with the familiar blue light shortly after, causing her to giggle.

_"This is it, huh?" _

"Yup, this is it." Kagome replied while patting the spear with her free hand. Gripping Sanosuke tighter to her body, she jumped into the well and hoped the spear would make it through with her.


	6. Chapter 6: Control

Chapter 6: Control

By Leoncia

Shippou greeted her on the other side, inhaling deeply as he waited for the blue light to fade and Kagome to appear. When she did he wrapped his arms around her and crouched down low, the muscles in his legs coiling. He released the strain and jumped up, out of the well and landed carefully on the soft grass.

"Ah…we're back! I can breathe again!" He once again inhaled deeply.

Shippou's hand shot out and grabbed Kagome's shoulder. At her confused look at his face, Shippou shook his head.

"Don't."

"What? Why not? We have to go, Shippou!" His grip on her only tightened.

"Something's attacking the village; I can smell smoke, blood, and a whole lot of other things I'm not going to mention."

Kagome's eyes narrowed as she shrugged Shippou's hand from her. "That's all the more reason for us to go, Shippou!"

Before the Kitsune could respond, Kagome was already running towards the village while removing Sanosuke's cover. Shippou sighed and ran to catch up to her, knowing that nothing was going to stop her now.

_"Kagome let me take over. You're not ready for this." _Sanosuke's voice traveled through her head, laced with worry. She gave the spear an odd look, "Take over? What do you mean?"

_"Just let me in! Relax and let me take over!" _

Kagome, confused, nodded and tried to what he asked of her. She stopped running, making Shippou skid to a halt and turn to face her, "What are you doing?" He noticed her eyes were closed tightly, only making him worry more.

But Kagome didn't hear his question. Once her body had relaxed, as well as her mind—even though it took quite a bit considering what has happening in the village—Sanosuke had literally taken over. She felt warmth surround her like a lover hugging her. She felt more than heard a heartbeat that wasn't her own. A pair of large hands were placed over her own and she felt breath against her ear as Sanosuke's familiar voice floated by.

"Thanks, Kagome."

Her eyes fluttered open against her will and they looked to Shippou. Sanosuke's voice came from her mouth and she knew then that she was just a passenger along for the ride.

"Let's go, kit."

Shippou nodded, confused as all hell, but followed Kagome (or was it Sanosuke now?) as she ran once again in the direction of the village. He briefly noted that her eyes were amber in coloration, and her black hair had a bit of a red tint to it as she sped past him.

As they neared the village Kagome cried out at the sight, _"We have to help them, Sanosuke!" _

Her own body nodded in agreement, "Yeah, we're going to. Don't worry your pretty little head off." Hearing his voice escape her own mouth still sent her reeling but she could tell he and Shippou were the only ones who could do this. She could tell by the feel of him—of his power that he had been quite the powerful warrior back in his time.

Kagome finally let go, giving him entire use of her body and not leaving a single part out; she gave him access to her mind, even her soul. She knew he was the one who was supposed to do this, not her amateur self.

Breaking from the line of the trees Sanosuke and Shippou immediately began attacking anyone who held a sword or some form of weapon. Sanosuke was using Kagome's memory to recognize the villagers so he wouldn't accidentally cut one of them down. While the sight of the village was nothing new to him, Kagome on the other hand was silently weeping within the deepest part of her mind.

Even though Sanosuke had complete control over her body she could still see what was before them, still hear the sounds that were echoing throughout the village—the yells and cries of pain, laughter from those who were attacking, and she could smell the copper scent of blood hanging thick in the air.

She could feel her hands tighten on the spear as Sanosuke dove for the nearest attacker, his spear sliding deep into the back of the man. He didn't stop ramming it into him until he saw the tip of his spear sticking out the attacker's—more like bandit now that Sanosuke was closer—chest. He gave a quick tug and moved onto the next one, letting the corpse fall to the ground.

Kagome felt sick. She felt the metal pierce the man and felt through her hands the vibrations of the spear as it struck bone and other bodily organs. The amount of blood that spurted out was enough for her to know that the man would never survive an attack such as that. She could only wait and hold on as Sanosuke and Shippou swept through the village, taking one after another bandit down as quickly as they possibly could.

"Kagome pay attention!" Sanosuke yelled. "You must pay attention to me and what I'm doing; else you'll never be able to do this without me!"

Shaken from her emotional state, Kagome was about to refuse until she realized he was right. What if something should happen to Sanosuke, would she ever be able to do what he was doing right then? Probably not, she decided.

Steeling herself she responded to him, _"What do I need to do?" _

"That's my girl," she felt him grin and suddenly, as if he was grabbing her and shoving her body, she regained partial control. He guided her along, like her father did when she was learning to write before he passed away. She felt his hands, firm and steady, on her own and she paid close attention to the feel of the spear; of his technique as he battled. She felt his body, even if it was ethereal, pressed against her own so close she would have blushed a scarlet color if the circumstances were different. She noticed he was a tall man and her head probably only reached the top of his ribcage.

He was moving with her, helping her do what she could never do by herself.

Spinning the spear in her hand and plunging it into the last bandit, Sanosuke's grip on her hands didn't lessen in the slightest. Her body was heaving from the physical exertion and she was pretty sure if it wasn't for Sanosuke she would fold in on herself and collapse to the ground.

She felt a hand on her stomach, "It's over, Kagome. You can let go now." And she did.

She dropped the spear and fell to her knees, vomiting everything she ate that day out onto the blood covered ground. She still felt Sanosuke pressed against her, his hands leaving hers and he now had his arms wrapped around her tightly. She was thankful for the contact.

Her body was shaking and she felt worse than she ever had in her life. She was covered in blood, hands and knees setting in the mud made from the rain of blood that Shippou and Sanosuke—no, and herself—had caused just moments before. But she didn't cry. She _refused _to cry. This is what needed to be done and she knew it, there was no other way to stop the bandits than this. She knew they wouldn't listen to reason, and really? She was tired of trying to reason with people that didn't want to hear it.

"Thank you, Sanosuke." She wheezed out between bouts of dry heaving. Shippou was standing in front of her now, also covered in blood. He turned when he heard footsteps behind him and placed himself defensively between Kagome and whoever it was.

"Calm thyself, Shippou."

It was Kaede with a grim look on her face. She hobbled past Shippou and kneeled down to Kagome, "Thank ye Kagome and ye too, Shippou. I don't think the village would be left standing if the two of ye hadn't shown up." Apparently only she could sense the presence of Sanosuke. For that Kagome was glad. She didn't have it in her to explain it all over again.

Kagome felt the sting of tears in her eyes and held them back. Slowly, with help from Sanosuke, she stood up on shaking legs and looked Kaede. She tried to give the old woman a reassuring smile, and it was given back to her.

_"I'm letting go now, will you be all right?" _Sanosuke asked her.

"Yes, I'm fine now, Sanosuke." And with her statement she felt suddenly cold as Sanosuke's soul retreated back into the spear.

_"I'm going to sleep for a while. Wake me when you're ready to leave, will you? That drained quite a bit of energy. Either that or I'm not used to the whole astral projection thing yet." _

Before Kagome could ask him how he knew the term astral projection she noticed the lack of Sanosuke's being within the recesses of her mind. When did he worm his way that far into her brain? She felt empty now that he had gone to sleep.

Kaede spoke up again, "Come, let's get ye both cleaned up. I'm sure ye want to be leaving soon." Kagome nodded as she followed Shippou and Kagome towards the area of the hot springs nearby.

Kagome walked slowly as her muscles protested with each step she took. Shippou looked in about the same shape. That had been his first real battle and she wondered how he was fairing. She took a long glance at him and he was pale as death and shaking. Kagome frowned just a tad and reached out; taking his own blood and gore covered hand into her own, giving it a small squeeze which he returned.

They reached the hot springs and immediately began to strip out of their clothes, stiff with dried blood. Kagome briefly wondered if Shippou should be bathing with her considering his size and mentality now and was about to voice it until she noticed Shippou dive into the water quickly. He surfaced to grab his pack and pull out his new toiletries.

She couldn't blame him. Modesty would have to wait until later. She stepped into the water and her muscles immediately began to relax. Dunking her head under the water she proceeded to wash the blood out of her hair. She knew that was the least thing in her hair but she didn't feel like finding out what else _was_ stuck in her black locks.

They both scrubbed themselves furiously, their backs turned to each other. Once they were finished they moved to another area of the hot spring, not wanting to stay in the one they just washed all the human parts into. Kagome was content to soak, and apparently Shippou was as well.

Comfortable silence fell between them for some time until Shippou spoke.

"I didn't have any problem killing those humans." His voice was almost a whisper and Kagome strained to hear him.

Kagome nodded slowly, "More than likely because you're a demon. I'm pretty sure it's a natural born instinct to protect what you care about. It's in us humans as well but as I found out, it's harder to bring to the surface."

"How did you do it then?" Shippou turned to look at her, his eyes staying on her face.

"Sanosuke helped me…"

At her answer Shippou nodded, "I thought as much. When you left, you… you changed, Kagome."

Kagome opened her eyes to look at him, "Changed? How so?"

The Kitsune shrugged and fiddled with his long, auburn hair. "Your eyes were a different color; amber. Your hair had a red tint to it, too."

Kagome rolled the idea over in her head. Was it Sanosuke as he took over her body? Did his traits suddenly become her own?

As if summoned, Sanosuke spoke to both of them, "It was me. I've never done that before so I can't exactly explain how it happened, but if Shippou saw it then… I guess it's true." He chuckled as he finished.

Kagome felt his comfortable presence slowly enter back into her mind and she felt relieved. Then a thought hit her as she glared over at the spear leaning against a nearby tree. "Sanosuke…" her voice was low and dangerous.

"Uhoh," Shippou spoke up. He knew that tone. It was the one she and Sango used when Miroku were spying on the girls while they bathed.

"Yes, Kagome, what is it?"

"Can you _see_?" she asked in a threatening manner.

"See? See what? I don't know what you're talking about." He was avoiding the question and Kagome knew it. She stood up suddenly and rushed out of the springs, grabbing her towel and wrapping it around her figure.

"Argh, you pervert! You should have said something earlier! I thought you were sleeping, anyway."

Sanosuke gave a nervous chuckle and went quiet. Apparently he had nothing else to say on the matter. Until, at least, something dawned on him.

"So, wait. _I _can't see you, but Shippou can? The hell is up with that?" he asked, offended.

Kagome shrieked with frustration as she gathered her things and disappeared to change into fresh clothing. Kaede had already left with her and Shippou's dirty ones, saying she would wash them for the two.

"Shippou's been taking a bath with me since he went up to my calves! He's like my son." She said and she could hear Sanosuke grumble and go quiet once more.

Kagome fumed as she changed into a deep red (much darker than the ones Kikyou wore) hakamas and a white haori with red stitching. This particular one her mother had taken it upon herself to embroider sakura on. She angrily brushed through and tossed her still damp hair into a high ponytail, tying it with a red ribbon.

When she returned to the spring Shippou had already changed into a set of clothing that mimicked his other outfit. He was set and ready to go. Kagome grumbled and grabbed Sanosuke from his place against the tree and marched out of the clearing, Shippou close on her heels.

"Let's go and say good-bye to Kaede. We need to be on the move if we want to find Sesshoumaru." Kagome said as they walked.


	7. Chapter 7: The Demon Lord of the West

Chapter 7: The Demon Lord of the West

By Leoncia (AisuKaze)

Three days have passed since Kagome, Shippou, and Sanosuke left Kaede's village. Their first lead was to head towards the west. Kagome remembered InuYasha saying that his father, and now his half-brother, ruled over the lands of the west. It was probably the best place to start, in her opinion.

And it, in fact, was. Shortly after they crossed over the border into his lands, Sesshoumaru noticed.

He rose from his spot against the tree he was lounging on and lightly tipped his head up, taking in a deep breath through his nose.

"Milord, what is it?" came the voice of his retainer, Jaken, from behind him. Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed and he cocked his head a bit to look at Jaken.

"We're leaving, Jaken."

Jaken gave a squawk and nodded his head rapidly. He followed behind his Lord as Sesshoumaru began to move. He was heading east and Jaken didn't miss it.

"Where are we going, Lord Sesshoumaru?" the retainer asked meekly.

Sesshoumaru's response was a noise coming from the back of his throat, almost like a grunt. Jaken knew that was the end of it and didn't bother asking again. The only thing he could wonder was why they were headed towards InuYasha's forest?

* * *

Kagome groaned and flopped herself on the ground, taking care that Sanosuke didn't butt her in the head. "Shippou, any trace of him yet?"

The demon in question shook his head, "I'm not for sure. It's been awhile since I've seen or smelt Sesshoumaru. I can't retain the memory of scents like the dog demons can."

Satisfied with his answer Kagome let herself tip backwards and she landed on her back on the grass. The spear lay against her and she could still feel it hum with Sanosuke's soul. She was growing more accustomed to having the spear against her each day that passed and she felt naked when it wasn't around.

Kagome was quite happy to lay there until her legs stopped hurting. She barely heard Shippou say he was leaving to hunt for their dinner. She raised a hand and waved it slightly in response.

_"Kagome, is it wise to fall asleep in such a place? You're quite defenseless right now." _Sanosuke asked.

"I'm not defenseless. You're here with me." She said with humor in her voice. Sanosuke just chuckled. _"Very well. Rest well, then." _

And she did. It didn't take long for her to pass into slumber but it was soon disturbed by a threatening aura. She sat up quickly, grabbing Sanosuke in her hands. Rising to her feet she dropped into a defensive stance and waited.

She couldn't sense exactly what was coming for her but she and Sanosuke both didn't like the feel of it. She could tell because the haft of the spear was slowly becoming warmer. Kagome was sensing Sanosuke's feelings through the weapon and she smiled.

Hearing a whooshing sound, Kagome recognized it instantly. The sound of an arrow being shot and she didn't have the time to react. Sanosuke noticed it as well and he too found himself in the same predicament as Kagome. He didn't have enough time to take over Kagome's body and dodge.

The arrow came from behind them and Kagome quickly moved to the right, but the arrow still hit, tearing swiftly through the fabric of her haori and into her arm. With a cry of pain she dropped to her knees, Sanosuke clattering to the ground. Lodged in her left arm, sure enough, was an arrow. Blood began to seep through her haori and she gritted her teeth. She slowly crept her hand to grab the spear again. Tightly her hand wrapped around it as she tried to take her mind off the pain.

Sanosuke yelled out, "Who was that!?" He exploded in anger and projected his soul into Kagome. He took complete control of her without her permission and reached around, breaking the arrow off at the shaft. The arrowhead would remain for now; he knew Kagome was in enough pain from just his act alone. He could _feel _it. It only made his anger swell more.

In her body, he stood up and grabbed ahold of his spear. Turning to face the way the arrow had come from, he felt Kagome's panic as a woman who resembled his owner step out from the tree lines. "Is this Kikyou?" he asked her.

He didn't need an answer. He could tell it by feeling her panic rise through the roof. The woman in front of them didn't speak, just slowly walked towards Kagome. Her slender hand reached out, towards the almost completed Shikon no Tama that was around her neck.

Sanosuke had enough. He threw back his spear and directed it towards Kikyou's stomach. It failed to penetrate the woman as his body—or Kagome's really—was now frozen in place. Something had stopped his swing in mid-air, and he didn't like it one bit.

Kikyou's fingers briefly touched the Shikon and she pulled it back with a yelp of pain. The Shikon had shocked and burned her.

"Tsk," the sound came from Kikyou as she glared at the offending thing. After a moment she looked into Kagome's now amber eyes thanks to Sanosuke and turned, disappearing as quickly and randomly as she had appeared.

Sanosuke grunted in frustration and tried to return his soul to the spear, but he soon found out it was impossible. Kagome wasn't responding to him and her shared body was still paralyzed. He felt a surge of pain course through Kagome's body and they both screamed; their voices mingling together and echoing throughout the forest.

The paralyzing of her body was gone and Kagome collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain. Sanosuke's soul was forced from her body and back into the spear. "Kagome, Kagome! Answer me, please!" his voice was filled with desperation as he watched helplessly as his owner screamed and cried out in pain.

Now he was just down right pissed off. He couldn't do anything for her except try to calm her down by speaking to her. He couldn't even touch her. The spear had landed too far away for him to even attempt to project his soul into her again; to try and share her pain or take some of it away.

His train of thought was stopped when he felt another, much larger aura in the area. This one even scared him.

"Who's there!?" he yelled out.

As much as he could see from the ground he watched as a tall figure, even taller than he had been, slowly emerge from the shadows of the forest. The man—demon—was clad in a white set of hakamas and haori, sakura print on the sleeves. A large white-silver boa was wrapped around his left shoulder. The boa mingled with his long hair of the same color. The male was wearing metal and bone armor, and was well equipped with two swords on either side of his hips.

Sanosuke watched as he stopped just short of Kagome's form curled into a ball on the ground. His golden eyes were steely but Sanosuke could sense a hint of curiosity within them. From Kagome's description matching the man, right down to the maroon stripes on each of his cheeks and the crescent moon on his forehead, Sanosuke could only guess at who it was.

"Sesshoumaru? You're Sesshoumaru right? InuYasha's half-brother?" the golden eyes of Sesshoumaru flickered around until they landed on the spear on the ground.

Sanosuke saw the demon's eyebrows raise just a fraction, and when he spoke his voice that mimicked Sanosuke's in pitch, was accusatory. "Why is a spear speaking to me?"

"You're him, right? If you are, you have to help her! Please, I'm begging you! I can't do anything like this!" Sanosuke pleaded to the demon. He hated that he had to lower himself to this point, but there was nothing else he could do.

Sesshoumaru seemed not to hear him as he looked back down at Kagome and sniffed. "She's in no danger of dying."

Frustrated, Sanosuke raised his voice, "At least move me closer to her!"

He resisted rolling his eyes and breaking the spear in half. He was surprised when he felt himself move over to the spear and lightly kick it towards the woman. It skidded across the forest floor and stopped as it hit Kagome roughly.

Sesshoumaru felt a rise of energy come from the spear and enter into Kagome. Soon after he saw the ethereal form of a man with long dark red hair, and amber eyes, cradle Kagome to his chest. Now Sesshoumaru was curious as a cat with a new toy—or mouse.

The amber gaze turned to look up at him. "What's wrong with her? Why is she in so much pain? The last time I check an arrow wound shouldn't do this to a person!"

Sesshoumaru moved and kneeled down next to the two, grabbing Kagome's arm and making her wince in even further pain which caused her to pass out. He could feel the glare from the man holding her but he didn't seem to care. Sesshoumaru inspected the wound and ever so slowly a frown crept onto his face.

"She has been poisoned." Sesshoumaru said as he looked to the man. The man in question's face was paler than it should have been. "Who did this?"

Sanosuke shook his head, the low tail at the base of his neck his hair was in swinging back and forth. "A woman named Kikyou."

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed and he looked down to Kagome again. "And where is the half-breed?"

"Half-breed? Oh, InuYasha? He…he's disappeared. So have the others."

Leaning back, Sesshoumaru thought of what others he could mean. He thought over the times he had seen his brother and said, "The demon slayer and monk?" Sanosuke nodded.

Sesshoumaru could feel the Kitsune that looked to the woman as his mother somewhere far off, stalking a deer. He sighed and quickly took a sniff of Kagome. When he did his eyes widen and he jerked back, rising to his feet. "This is impossible."

Sanosuke looked up at him then down to Kagome, his breath catching in his throat—at least he thought it was his breath. He wasn't sure if he could breathe now or not. He had to back out of Kagome and return to the spear after setting her gently on the ground. He didn't know what was going on inside of her body but he had a feeling if he stayed his soul would be obliterated.

Sesshoumaru watched as Kagome's raven black hair slowly took on a tint of dark blue. He kneeled down and rolled her over onto her back. He was shocked at what he saw.

Two jagged, dark blue lines appeared on each of her cheekbones—Sesshoumaru faintly remembered how his father's had looked-and he was shocked when her human ears started morphing and moving to rise and sit on top of her head. They now resembled InuYasha's so much except they were slightly larger and black. He watched as the same color of blue as the stripes appeared and outlined her eyelids, much like how his were tipped in red. He put his thumb on her mouth and gently pushed her lip up.

Her canines elongated into fangs as sharp and deadly as his own. He let go of her lip and grabbed her hand, and by this point he wasn't surprised to see claws replace her dull human fingernails.

"What is going on?" he questioned to mostly himself.

Sanosuke finally spoke, "I'd like an answer to that question, too!"


	8. Chapter 8: Mirror Image

Thank you for the reviews so far guys, I really appreciate it!

**Disclaimer: **I just noticed I didn't have one of these. But nope, I don't own either InuYasha or Hakuoki.

* * *

Sentience

Chapter 8: Mirror Image

By Leoncia (AisuKaze)

* * *

Kagome had never doubted much of her actions and choices in her life. There was no reason to, since she couldn't go back and change the past. Even if she had the ability to travel back and forth 500 years Kagome knew she wasn't changing the future, she was simply fulfilling her role in that particular part of history. But the morning she woke up with a headache that felt like she had been bludgeoned repeatedly on her head, she began doubting her ability to hold her liquor. She would have to ask her friends what—and how much of it—she drank so she would never even get a whiff of the stuff again.

Keeping her eyes shut Kagome began to berate herself silently, curing into a ball and wrapping her arms over her head. She felt strange as smooth silk slid over her arms as she pulled her bed sheets over her head to block out any light, but at that particular moment she wasn't too worried about it. After all, a hangover this bad certainly took precedence over remembering when she had updated her bedding.

While she laid there and tried to nurse her headache down to a low throb she felt something furry twitch against her hand. She touched it again and felt it twitch more rapidly. Feeling further she noticed that she could not only feel the furry thing under her hand but she could feel her hand on the furry thing, as if she was touching a part of her own body. The more she felt, the more and more it dawned on her that the "things" were actually ears—much like InuYasha's when she really thought about it.

With a swift movement her other hand flew to the opposite side of her head and felt another InuYasha-like ear there as well. What's worse is she kept feeling as if she was touching her ears but they were way too pointy, furry, and in the completely wrong place for them to be her own. Kagome's eyes flew open as she realized that they were actually** her **ears. She soon regretted the decision. Light blinded her eyes and made her already hurting head pound more. _"It feels like my brain is trying to break out and run away…" _she thought.

Kagome tried not to panic, opting to think of something else besides how her new ears appeared; she chose to focus on the sounds around her. She heard people whispering, one of the voices she recognized as Sanosuke's.

"Are you sure?" she heard her spear's deep voice ask.

An equally deep voice responded, "I am sure. Her Miko blood has been completely annihilated." Kagome could recognize the voice, but she couldn't put a face or a name to it.

Sanosuke and the other man continued their conversation as Kagome realized what it was they were talking about. _"Her Miko blood has been completely annihilated? What are they talking about?" _ She decided to stay quiet and listen a little longer.

"I'm not going to ask how that's possible, since you're probably as baffled as I am… but I'm just wondering why it would happen." Sanosuke mused.

"You do not know the true intentions of a Miko do you, spear?"

Sanosuke's voice sounded frustrated, "My name is Sanosuke Harada, not **spear**. And really, I don't know. I always thought they were just shrine maidens that took care of a Deity's shrine."

Kagome's ears twitched as she listened to them and she found that both of their voices were gradually soothing her headache away.

She heard a sigh and the mysterious man spoke again, "A true Miko is born with the power to oppose Demons. Their existence is an enemy to all of my kind. They're able to purify us and wash away the fact that we even lived. Your Miko just happens to have some of the strongest purification abilities that I have personally seen, even without her soul completely intact."

Kagome inhaled sharply and held her breath. _"They're talking about me aren't they?" _And sure enough, when Kagome tried to call upon her priestess abilities, nothing surface and it left her feeling hollow. _"But what does it mean? What happened to me?" _

She recalled last night's events. Kikyou had shown up, shot her with an arrow and from there Kagome really couldn't remember much.

"She's awake." Sanosuke said.

"Indeed."

She heard the soft rustle of silk and the sounds of footsteps coming closer to her. "Miko, open your eyes and look at me." It was the unknown man.

Kagome did as he asked, her eyes slowly opening as she looked up into a pair of golden eyes. They stared unblinkingly into hers. He spoke again, "You have heard everything we have said, have you not?"

She nodded, not taking her eyes away from his, "Yes… I did…" she all but muttered.

"You are confused." It wasn't a question, more like a fact. Kagome nodded again.

"Do you recognize me?" he asked.

Kagome tore her eyes away from his and took a small look at him. She only had to focus on the blue waning crescent moon on his forehead to instantly know who he was.

"Sesshoumaru." She paused and added, "Lord Sesshoumaru, I mean."

"Hnn. Yes." He nodded and watched as the woman sat up. She was disoriented and he could tell she was in a lot of pain as she moved and looked about. He asked her another question, "Have your eyes always been blue?"

Kagome looked up at him in shock and he could tell that no, they had not always been blue. He held up a hand to keep her from speaking, "Never mind." The Demon Lord turned on his heel and walked away, only to return moments later with a mirror he had taken off of a wall nearby.

Sesshoumaru held the mirror in front of Kagome and watched as her reactions went from confused, to panicked, and a multitude of others before she finally looked at him. "What happened to me, Lord Sesshoumaru? And why do I have ears on **top **of my head? And these markings…"

* * *

Kagome had a feeling she knew what was going on, kind of, but she wanted Sesshoumaru to be the one to tell her. She didn't want to fathom up something that crazy and the last thing she knew Sesshoumaru was not, was crazy.

"I will let your spear tell you the details. For now know that you are safe from any more sudden attacks. Take this time to rest. I will have food sent to you. While I am away you are free to move about as you please." He was moving around the room as he talked, placing the mirror back in its rightful place and gathering his swords up from their position against the wall. Finally he grabbed Sanosuke and handed the spear to her.

"While you're away, what do you mean? Where are you going?" Kagome asked as she gratefully accepted Sanosuke and hugged the spear to her chest, nuzzling her face against the wood. She felt the hum of Sanosuke's soul in the spear and let out a sigh of relief. She was happy that Kikyou hadn't done anything to him while she was unconscious. Sanosuke's own consciousness returned to her mind in gentle waves. As his presence settled Kagome noticed her headache was entirely gone. Her eyes fluttered as they slowly closed.

Sesshoumaru looked at her for a long moment, taking in the reaction the woman had once her spear was returned to her. After a long pause he spoke, "Sesshoumaru is appropriate for you to use now. Do not begin calling me Lord after all this time simply because you are in a state of confusion and weakness from being attacked."

Kagome's eyes opened and she looked at him, and without missing a beat Sesshoumaru continued. "I will be away for a few days. While I am searching for more answers as to your changes, I will be searching for the half-breed as well as your other companions. Your kit is in the next room over. However, he will be coming with me."

"Coming with you? Why is he doing that? And just where am I, anyway?" she asked with a hint of worry in her voice.

Sesshoumaru's left eyebrow twitched just a little bit and Kagome didn't miss it. "He will be coming with me just in case I happen to find your missing companions. He will serve as a sort of sign of truce should they attempt to attack me."

Realization crept into Kagome's mind. It made sense, after all. Every time that InuYasha saw Sesshoumaru he would try to fight him. The others would usually stay out of their way, but if something terrible was going on and they saw Sesshoumaru as another threat, Shippou would be there to show it wasn't so in that particular case.

As for her last question, Sesshoumaru decided he would leave that for her to figure out. Without another look at her he turned to leave, "And I will share a bit of advice with you, Miko. I recommend that even if you wish to go where you please, I suggest you not until I return. You may find yourself tripping over yourself if you decide not to be patient."

He left then and Kagome heard the sliding and the clicking of the shoji screen as Sesshoumaru left. She could hear his footfalls echo down the walkway outside and began to wonder if her hearing had improved.

* * *

Sanosuke's voice fluttered in her head, _"Kagome…" _

As she readied herself to respond she felt the energy of his soul enter her body. The warmth she remembered from the first time he had done this, returned to her slowly. A pair of strong arms wrapped around her and pulled her backwards, into a firm chest. Next to her she saw legs covered in loose, solid black hakamas. The left leg bent upward as Sanosuke shifted so his body was snugger against her.

Dark red hair spilled over her chest as Sanosuke's head came to rest on her shoulder. While he hugged her, Kagome took the time to have a closer look at what she could see of the man. His hands and forearms were wrapped in white and red bandages, his fingers and knuckles left bare. She could tell he wasn't wearing an inner kimono or a haori as the rest of his arms were bare. Kagome soon realized that he was wearing a very short, and very thin, haori type thing that was bordered with red on the short sleeves that left her with a very good look at his muscled biceps.

Curiosity got the better of her as she reached a hand up to try and touch the hair that lay against her. She was pleasantly surprised when she felt the smooth locks flow through her fingers, and noticed that his hair was more than likely tied back in some manner. Even though he was partially see-through, Kagome could still touch him.

The grip on her seemed to lessen at the touch, as if Sanosuke was relaxing, and she ran her fingers through the hair again. Quietly she asked, "What's the matter?"

The tight grip was back and slightly painful to her as Sanosuke's voice came out in a low, gruff mutter, "I felt so helpless after you were shot. Your body froze, and I couldn't move. My soul was shoved back into the spear because it flew away from you and then it was too far away and I couldn't reach you. Sesshoumaru had to kick me to you." He didn't sound happy, but when he mentioned Sesshoumaru kicking his spear he sounded down right angry.

With her free hand Kagome laid it on one of his and gave it a squeeze, "You know that's not your fault right? I'm the one who let go of the spear, not you. This is my body, after all."

Sanosuke didn't say anything. He just held onto her and stayed in that position for quite some time until they heard a light knock on the screen door, followed by a female's voice.

"Lady Kagome, may I come in? I have food and a change of clothing for you. I have also been instructed to check your wound."

Forgetting about the wound Kagome looked at her arm and she noticed she felt no pain, even with Sanosuke's tight grip on it. _"How long have I been out?" _she wondered.

"I think my wound is fine, but I'd appreciate the food and clothes! Come in, please." With that the door slid open and Kagome saw a delicate figure scoot inside on her knees, turning half-way and closing the screen behind her. With her she brought what she promised, a tray of food along with tea and a black and white yukata.

The woman was obviously a demon, and a Kitsune at that. She resembled Shippou in many ways, except she sported five tails where Shippou only had one. A soft pair of orange eyes looked to her, widened at the fact that there was a see through man clinging to her Lady.

"My…my lady? What is—who is that?" she asked, dumbfounded, as she pointed to Sanosuke.

Kagome blushed prettily and tried to shrug Sanosuke off of her. He didn't seem like he really felt like moving. "He—ah, he's my spear. He's a sentient weapon."

The Kitsune's eyes widen with recognition as she nodded and smiled softly. "My father had one, a female soul inside of a katana. I understand now." She stood and carried her light burden to Kagome; setting it down in front of her once she was close enough.

"Do you need help with anything?" she asked while reaching into her kimono's sleeve and producing a pair of wrapped chopsticks and offered them to Kagome. Yuuki wanted to check her wound, but the demon could tell she didn't have a snowball's chance at getting close enough to do that with the sentient weapon attached to her as he was.

"No, I don't, but thank you anyway. Though I'd like to know your name if that's all right?" Kagome said with a soft smile as she managed to coax Sanosuke into at least letting one of her arms go so she could reach forward and grab the chopsticks that were being handed to her.

The maid blushed and fidgeted with her hands. Apparently she wasn't used to the attention. "You may call me Yuuki."

"Yuuki…" Kagome said the name with a friendly ring to it, which only served to make the maid even more fidgety. Kagome looked to her with worry and asked, "What's the matter, Yuuki?"

Yuuki only glanced at Kagome's eyes as she spoke, "Because the guests that Lord Sesshoumaru has hardly paid me with the attention that you have. And after all, one of your station should not have to have a conversation with one of my status."

With confusion clearly in her voice Kagome asked, "My station? What do you mean?" She came to the conclusion that she was located somewhere within Sesshoumaru's domain, but hearing the Kitsune demon refer to him as her Lord, the assumption was proven correct.

Yuuki raised her eyes to meet Kagome's, "You are a Daiyoukai, much like my Lord Sesshoumaru. It is only common knowledge that I pay you with the same amount of respect that I do my Lord."

Sanosuke's grip tightened as his head flew up. He craned his neck to see Kagome's face, "Kagome, I was going to tell you but I…" he paused. He didn't have a good answer. He offered an apology instead, his hands sliding down her arms to grasp her hands gently. "I'm sorry."

Kagome felt dizzy and went limp, chopsticks forgotten as they fell on the floor with a clatter. She had an idea what was going on with her, but this? This was a whole different story. She collapsed even further against Sanosuke, an act that made Yuuki crawl forward quickly and reach a hand out to her. Sanosuke glared at the maid and pulled Kagome away from her.

"Leave us for now, Yuuki. I need to speak with her; alone. Will you make sure no one bothers us?" The tone of his voice, sweet and kind, didn't match the look on his face. A glowering, angry stare was being shot at her and Yuuki took the hint. She quickly gathered herself to stand, bowed lowly and left as quickly as she came. She knew enough about sentient weapons to know that if she angered the soul any further, he was liable to skewer her with his spear after he had taken over her Lady's body.

* * *

Sanosuke sighed and rotated Kagome around so she could sit side ways in his lap. With his left knee still bent, he supported her against it and placed a hand on her head and gently pulled it to lie in the crook of his neck. He rested his elbow on his upraised knee and played with her long blue-black locks of hair, twirling it around his fingers.

"Sesshoumaru is even confused by this. He's never seen such a thing in his life, and by the sounds of it, he's really old." He said gently and waited for her response. When he received none he continued, "But he has asked council on it from quite a number of people. He heard a rumor, through those he has so far asked, of a demonic witch who lives far to the north of here. That's where he's going right now."

He fell silent and thought on how to tell her this next part. It was difficult for him to bring up his past—or his future given the current time period seeing as his life would being around 350 to 400 years from now—but either way he felt she needed to hear it. Playing with her hair more, he rested his head on hers and when he spoke, his voice was soft.

"When I was alive…" he noticed that got her attention. The ears on top of her head twitched, tickling his face and causing his mouth to twitch with a grin, "…there was a substance that the Shogunate forced my group—the Shinsengumi—to research and create. It was known in the west for heightening a human's strength, and regenerative abilities. This was, as we found out a bit too late, at the cost of the human's life force. It used up in minutes what it would have normally taken years, if not decades, to deplete."

Kagome was looking at him now, her head tilted back and resting against his arm. He smiled a bit to her, even if he was feeling a bit embarrassed by how she was staring at him. He remembered it was the first time she had seen his face, the times before he had always been behind her or completely in control of her body. Sesshoumaru had seen him, and he was pretty sure Shippou had at some point during the time he was freaking out while Kagome was unconscious.

He felt the heated blossom of embarrassment rise into his cheeks and he reached up with his free hand to meekly rub the back of his head. Even if he wasn't alive anymore, it sure as hell felt like it at times like this.

Sanosuke cleared his throat and picked up his conversation, "We called it the Water of Life, and what it turned humans into, we ended up naming Furies. I lost a few of my friends to this stuff, too. But we found out later that the main ingredient in this potion was a demon's blood from the west. They suffered through bloodlust and an aversion to sunlight."

Kagome shifted against him and he waited until she was comfortable until speaking again, "And those traits were passed onto the humans who took the Water of Life. I gave this information to Sesshoumaru and he brought up an interesting gem of thought."

He paused, "What if what poisoned you had been the same thing? Just with the blood of a Japanese demon instead of a western one? This is what Sesshoumaru is going to find out, if this will have the same side effects as the Water of Life I'm used to. If he can find out any information we might be able to assume that it is the same."

"Effects?" Kagome asked, tilting her head. The entire time Sanosuke was speaking to her, her eyes hardly left his face. He was incredibly handsome, with well-defined features and she could feel through his hold that he was a well-muscled man. His body was lean and he was of a small frame as well, even if he was tall for a Japanese man. She was really surprised she wasn't blushing into the color of a tomato by now.

"Mmhm." He nodded, "When Furies would use their powers too much, and it would result in their lifespan decreasing each time. Every time they were wounded, every time they used their strength and heightened agility… it would take years off of their life until they eventually turned to dust."

Kagome's heart sank. "So you mean if I use my powers too much, I'll die well before I'm supposed to?"

"I'm not for sure," he shrugged. "Furies that I know of only retained their human appearance until they used their powers. Then their hair would turn white and their eyes a glowing red. You, on the other hand, have the appearance of a full-blooded demon no matter what. I, and Sesshoumaru, have a feeling that this is permanent with no danger to your life. It might have been your Miko blood."

He grinned at her, "My soul was still inside of your body when the bloods started fighting each other. It was a chaos storm I had never felt in my life until that moment, and I didn't know what it was… at least until Sesshoumaru explained to me what a Miko is really meant for."

"I think your Miko blood purified the harmful effects of the potion and allowed you to literally become a full-blooded demon, and one that has the powers of a Daiyoukai according to that Yuuki girl."

Kagome began to tug on the sleeves of her haori, nervous. Sanosuke noticed this and gave a bark of laughter, "Anyway, look at this."

He let go of her hair and pointed towards the mirror that Sesshoumaru had earlier used to show Kagome her new appearance. She followed his hand and looked into the long, wall length mirror. She could see herself wrapped up with Sanosuke, who dwarfed her considerably in size, and a grin was clearly on his face. Kagome forced her gaze off of him and looked to herself. She looked the same as she did when Sesshoumaru showed her, but now she took in a more in-depth look at herself.

As she thought, InuYasha-like ears rested on top of her head, twitching every so often as they picked up sounds—mostly Sanosuke's heartbeat and the sound of him breathing—and her ice blue, almost white, eyes reflected back to her with such an intensity Kagome had a hard time believing that they were her own.

She took in the jagged navy blue stripes on her cheeks and the lines of the same color on her eyelids. She guessed that these lines signified her as a Daiyoukai since Sesshoumaru had them in the same place as well. She grinned without humor and saw her canines were now much like the dog-demon brothers she knew and she could only guess her hands now held deadly claws.

Sanosuke smiled at watching her and began rubbing her right ear between his fingers, feeling the silky texture run against the coarse feeling of his battle-hardened hand. Kagome could almost drool. What he was doing to her ear felt extremely good, like an itch being scratched. She heard a faint thumping sound as her eyes half-closed and she silently wondered where the noise was coming from.

Apparently the man holding her had the same question too, because he stopped rubbing her ears and the noise stopped shortly after, though not without a disappointed whimper from the woman sitting in his lap. He pondered a moment and began rubbing her ear again. Sure enough, like he thought, the thumping began in earnest. He laughed loudly and leaned over to get a good look at her rear end.

A blue-black, medium sized fluffy tail was wagging rapidly and hitting the floor beside them. "Kagome, you have a tail."


End file.
